Dog peeing and pooping inside once in awhile

Question
I have a two year old male shorkie-not neutered.  He will poop and pee in the house at times when he has a doggy door and knows how to go outside.  I wonder if neutering him would help and what I do to teach him not to.  I never catch him so I'm not sure if I should do anything.  

Answer

Hi Trisha,

Unaltered male dogs often "mark" in the house, which is not to be confused with a house training issue. It is done for a reason other than needing to go to the bathroom.

Neutering can help. Clean areas where your dog has soiled in your home with an enzymatic cleaner, such as Nature's Miracle or Simple Solution, so he won't be attracted back to re-mark the area. If your dog is marking and you do not see him doing it, he should not be having the unsupervised run of your home, since he can't be trusted. Any time you are unable to supervise your dog, he needs to either be crated, or kept in one room of your home. Child gates or indoor dog pens work well to contain dogs inside the home. You could also keep your dog on his leash, and tie the end of the leash to your belt loop, so the dog is always in your sight, and can't sneak off to pee.

More effective then relying on the dog to use the pet door, is to take your dog outside on a leash, and offer praise when he goes to the bathroom during the walk. Besides getting the extra exercise, dogs get mental stimulation from being walked, which makes them calmer and better behaved inside the home.

Best of luck,
Patti